Mag Hags

The Lemmings

The biggest problem is that everyone's following and copying and emulating and vying for the same advertisers and demographic hot buttons, but no one's trailblazing. CD reviews are virtually indistinguishable from one mag to another -- everyone writes them adequately, but no one writes them well. Newspaper obituaries require more creative thought. Primarily reviews are 100-word blurb jobs: Name the band, toss in a few influences, spotlight a few tracks, launch a few pun-loaded torpedoes if it sucks, wrap it up, collect $25. Read (or write) enough and you'll read right through 'em.

You get the government you deserve; music journalism follows the same logic. At least Revolver put a band on the cover.

Related Content

• Musical "Holograms" We Don't Want To See Anytime Soon (OK, Yes We Do)
  April 18, 2012
• Rap Round Table: If You Could Only Listen To One Musician For All Of Time, Who Would It Be?
  January 18, 2012
• The Hair Balls Super Bowl Live Blog: Remember To Piss
  February 5, 2012
• One Year After Woman Gets Masters In The Beatles, We Hunt Down Most Bizarre College Music Courses
  January 25, 2012
• Ask A Rapper: Discussing the Six Worse Rap Collaborations Ever
  November 1, 2011

More About

• Ed Needham
• The Vines (Musical Group)
• Tupac Shakur
• Celebrity News
• Hip-Hop and Rap

Like this Story?

Sign up for the Music Newsletter: Keep your thumb on the local music scene with music features, additional online music listings and show picks. We'll also send special ticket offers and music promotions available only to our Music Newsletter subscribers.

Privacy Policy Cancel Continue

Everyone pisses; everyone moans; everyone complains. How can American music mags right the ship?

Stop sounding like publicists. Ditch the "celebrity rockers and the cars" brand-name-a-thons. Call windbag interview subjects on their bullshit. Piss people off. Innovate. Dig. Write coherently but critically. And have a fucking opinion. Readers sure do, and for now, the reviews truly read like obituaries.